Inverness Caley Thistle needs new home, says investor

Trouble-hit Inverness Caledonian Thistle (ICT) should move to a new, smaller stadium to help it survive, according to former chairman Alan Savage.

The businessman has provided hundreds of thousands of pounds since last summer to keep the League 1 football club afloat.

Mr Savage said 7,512-capacity Caledonian Stadium, which was opened in 1996 and upgraded in 2004, was too big and costly to run.

He has suggested a new stadium could be built at Inverness Campus, a site already home to Inverness College UHI and the NHS's Highland National Treatment Centre.

ICT was placed into administration in October due to financial problems, including large debts.

On Monday, administrators said they had been unsuccessful in finding a new owner for the club - leaving it facing the risk of liquidation.

Mr Savage has committed to funding ICT until the end of this season, which is about six weeks away.

He has also offered to cover some costs in the next two seasons, but said he needed more help to keep Inverness going until a buyer could be found.

"I've run out of money," he said.

"The place is rocking and rolling. I think people are enjoying themselves more," he said, referring to good results from the team in the league.

"But it needs cash, and there are legacy issues such as the stadium being too big and too costly."

The team was formed in 1994 following a controversial merger of two historic Inverness clubs - Thistle and Caledonian.

The new club's stadium was built on a site overlooking the Inner Moray Firth at the Longman, Inverness's main industrial area.

ICT's home was opened in November 1996, before it was later upgraded to increase its capacity in line with Scottish Premier League rules.

The revamped ground was officially opened in January 2005.

But Mr Savage said the club should relocate about three miles south to Inverness Campus, which was opened by Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE) in 2015 at a cost of £100m.

Mr Savage said: "Maybe within a few years we could get moved to the campus, have a fit-for-purpose stadium.

"With a bit of goodwill from Highlands and Islands Enterprise and Highland Council, and rich people in Inverness, it's not a big job at all to turn this club around."

A Highland Council spokesperson said: "Highland Council continues to engage with Inverness Caledonian Thistle Football Club and relevant stakeholders."

HIE said: "It would be inappropriate for us to comment while the club's administration process is ongoing."